SFPD admits to shooting man sitting in wheelchair

Tools

UPDATE: San Francisco police Tuesday night admitted that the man they shot earlier in the day was sitting in a wheelchair at the time of the shooting.

Police had previously said that the man was standing at the time of the shooting.

Cops were called to the San Francisco Department of Health center at 1380 Howard St. around 10:15 a.m. on reports that the suspect was vandalizing city vehicles, Officer Eric Chiang said.

According to Chief George Gascon, the officers tried to subdue the suspect, whose name was not released, when he stabbed a police officer in the left shoulder.

The suspect uses a wheelchair, but is mobile, Gascon said. The extent of the suspect’s mobility is unknown.

After the stabbing, additional officers responded to the scene and continue to attempt to subdue the subject. Police shot the suspect after attempts to use a beanbag gun failed.

According to Gascon, it took the officers less than one second to react to the situation and fire.

“It takes officers one second, to one and a-half second to perceive a threat,” he said.

Police shot a knife-wielding man they say stabbed an officer in front of a mental health services center in The City Tuesday morning.

Cops were called to the San Francisco Department of Health center at 1380 Howard St. around 10:15 a.m. on reports that the suspect was vandalizing city vehicles, Officer Eric Chiang said.

When they arrived, “there was some type of altercation where the officer was stabbed,” Chiang said.

Police said they shot the man after attempts to use a beanbag gun failed. The condition of the officer or suspect was not immediately known, Chiang said.

“I don’t know the number of times [the suspect was shot] or extent of injuries,” Chiang said.

A worker at the mental health center said the unidentified suspect was a wheelchair-bound client of 1380 Howard St.

Police say the man was in a wheelchair but was not confined to it, Chiang said.

"He was seen up and moving about a number of times," he said.

Georgia Jackson, who works in the building, said she saw the suspect about an hour-and-half before the shooting in the wheelchair.

“He looked sad, like he was trying to get services,” Jackson said.

Jackson said a co-worker told her the suspect became angry after he was denied services.

“My co-worker was saying that he saw [the suspect] vandalizing vehicles,” she said. “At 1380 Howard they help the homeless, that, you know, sometimes they get angry.”

Police were tight-lipped about the shooting late Tuesday morning, citing an active investigation. Tenth Street between Mission and Howard streets was closed down to traffic while investigators probed the crime scene.

Within the crime scene, a wheelchair stood up on the street against a curb, with a knife nearby and numerous articles of clothing.

In front of 1380 Howard St., at least two tires of a city vehicle had been slashed.

Tom Cebollero, owner of Metric Motors at 10th and Howard streets, said he witnessed the chaos that followed the shooting.

“I was outside feeding the meter. I heard a gunshot and then I heard sirens,” Cebollero said. “Tenth Street is blocked off. They’re setting up a command center. It’s a crazy situation.” -- Mike Aldax